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Sunday, January 30, 2011

Immigration fraud: Time running out for duped students in US

WASHINGTON: Hundreds of Indian students, duped by a California-based "sham" university, are frantically knocking at the doors of colleges begging for admission in their desperate attempt to save their academic careers and avoid deportation back home.

These students, said to be around 1,500, were studying at the California-based Tri Valley University, which was shut down by the federal authorities last week after investigation revealed that this relatively new academic institution had indulged in massive and wire fraud and helped foreign nationals illegally acquire immigration status.

Following a raid at the University building in Pleasanton, California, federal authorities swooped down on its students - 95 per cent of who are from India, mostly from Andhra Pradesh - for questioning and interrogation.

Immigration attorneys and Indian American community leaders who have been helping these students told media that scores of them have been a detained, released on bond, and many of them have been installed with Intensive Supervision Appearance Program (radio tags). "Time is fast running out for these students," said Ram Mohan Konda of the American Telugu Association .

"These students do not know where to go. They are being asked for thousands of dollars in bond and. At the same time they have to join any university as soon as possible so as to maintain their visa status and complete their studies," Konda said.

Konda, who has been in personal contact with a number of these students, said that they are not able to get any fresh admission because the SEVIS has been blocked. Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) of the Department of Homeland Security is the web based programme to track the foreign students in the US.

Until it is active, no university and academic institution can admit any foreign students to their campus. Also since the fall classes have already begun, it would be difficult for these students to get admission into any college or universities after a week or so, Konda said, adding that authorities have to act fast otherwise most of these students would be left with no other option but to go back voluntarily or be deported.

In some cases students are being asked for bond deposits running into thousands of dollars and a large number of them have been served with Notice to Appear (which is considered as the first step towards the start of deportation process).

Raj Akula, a Texas-based attorney, said that he knows at least 20 such students who have been subject to detention. While many of them have been released on bail, a few of them are still in the detention centres as they have not been able to furnish the bond money. These students are spread across the country, Ohio, Illinois, Washington and Pennsylvania.

One of the students was released early this week from a Ohio detention centre only after he furnished a bond of a USD 22,000, Akola said refraining from identifying the student, who do not want to be named in the press.

Another student in Ohio is still languishing in the detention centre as he has not been able to manage the USD 22,000 required for the bond. On behalf of the said student, Akula has approached the local court to reduce the bond amount. "This is outrageous," Akula said of the high bond money.

NEW DELHI: The Apple iPad is finally here! Starting Friday, you can visit the nearest Apple retailer (or iStore) and pick up the tablet you've always wanted. The starting price of Rs 27,990 will most likely make Apple aficionados rub their hands in delight. The base version of the iPad (16 GB, wi-fi only) has been selling at Rs 33,000 in the grey market and on online stores.

iPad has earned the title of the fastest selling gadget ever. In less than a year of its launch, it has sold nearly 15 million units, earning close to $10 billion in revenue. The iPad launch was announced in the US exactly a year ago (January 27, 2010), though it only went on sale in April 2011. Since then, the iPad has single-handedly reinvented the tablet market.

Though not through Apple, iPad has been on sale in India since August 2010, mostly through the grey market. Several e-commerce websites also started selling the device subsequently. Analysts peg the total number of iPads in India currently at about 40,000 units. This includes sales through the grey market, online sales or those who simply purchased the device abroad.

Not only is the India launch of the iPad delayed (it was launched in Hong Kong & Singapore as far back as July 2010) but the iPad 2, due out in a couple of months, is rumored to have dual cameras, a higher resolution 'retina' display and a faster processor. Add that to the increasing competition from other tablet makers like Samsung, Motorola and BlackBerry and your choice becomes confusing- wait for iPad 2 or pick up a non-Apple device that packs in more features.

Like elsewhere in the world, an entire ecosystem is getting created around the iPad. Accessories for Apple products is a flourishing industry and various accessories for the iPad have been available for the past few months at electronics stores and e-commerce sites.

BSNL has announced 3G plans specifically for the iPad while Airtel, Vodafone and Idea have been selling micro SIM cards (for 3G versions) for some time.

In all, there are six versions of the iPad available; capacities of 16, 32 or 64GB in a choice of Wi-Fi only or Wi-Fi + 3G. The 16GB Wi-Fi only version will be priced at Rs 27,990 while the top of the line 64GB Wi-Fi + 3G version will be priced at Rs 44,990.

Marketing Aphrodisiacs for Sensual Sustenance

See which products grocers and retailers tend to push around Valentine’s Day to “bring the heat”

Did that get your attention? I thought so. So the other day I’m walking through my local grocery store picking up odds and ends for the meal I was going to make for dinner and made a rather random observation. Now, I know specialty stores such as Hallmark go absolutely crazy around Valentine’s Day with the cards and the candy, but this is not limited to just them. Of course grocers and other supermarkets alike have to get in on the action, too. But as I’m walking amid the aisle of endless red heart candy boxes and funky Valentine’s Day gag gifts, I couldn’t help but notice some other products were being sold in access.

It is a known fact that chocolate is a well known and recognized aphrodisiac, perhaps that’s why they market it so much around Valentine’s Day, and Christmas for that matter. However, there were some other well known aphrodisiacs that were being sold in access that day as well: oysters, bananas, radishes, champagne, even caviar.

Oysters

Oysters have been linked with love and sexuality for thousands of years. It’s the perfect “finger food” that couples can conveniently eat with their hands and toss away the shell in the heat of the moment.

The term "aphrodisiac" was generated when Aphrodite, the Greed goddess of love, emerged from the sea on an oyster shell and promptly gave birth to Eros. Due to the fact that Aphrodite was said to be born from the sea, many types of seafood have been considered aphrodisiacs.

Many ancient people believed in the so-called “law of similarity,” reasoning that an object resembling genitalia may possess sexual powers. An oyster is a classic example of this.

Furthermore, some believe oysters gained their reputation at a time when they became associated with zinc, which could improve overall health and therefore lead to an increased sex drive.

Bananas

It goes without saying that bananas are associated with many phallic innuendos due to its shape. Bananas originated in Asia, where they became one of the earliest cultivated fruits. The aphrodisiac nature of bananas was embraced early on in India, bananas were said to be a favorite fruit of the sages. Even today, bananas are included in Indian offerings to the fertility gods.

It’s unfortunate that this delicious source of potassium can make one feel self conscious just by eating it in the presence of others. But the brutal fact here is bananas contain the enzyme Bromelain, which is known to trigger the aphrodisiac effects. Their soft and lush texture also further emphasizes the sexual association. So next time you feel a leg cramp coming on or feel the urge to get in the mood, peel a banana and enjoy the ride.

Radishes

Radishes were coveted by the Pharaohs for their aphrodisiac qualities. In addition to Egypt, quite a few Middle Eastern cultures view radishes as stimulating sexual desire causing many nervous fathers to disallow them from their daughter’s diet.

Also, the spicy, zesty, crispy consistency of radishes would set anyone off and cause one to do some pretty kinky things. It could all be psychological here due to the prominent history, but sometimes you have to stick with what works.

Champagne

One of the world's most potent natural aphrodisiacs, Champagne is a symbol of celebration. Another fun, sexy fact is Champagne was Marilyn Monroe's favorite drink.The steady stream of delicate bubbles in Champagne hits the blood stream more quickly than immobile wine, wrapping the body in a warm robe of intoxication, which also goes right to the head.

Alcohol obviously can serve to lower anybody’s inhibitions, but Champagne has additional qualities which can serve to put people in the right frame of mind. Champagne also conveys a celebratory mood and brings back memories of positive events further easing any kind of anxiety couples may have before they engage in the act.

Caviar

Aside from exuding opulence and excess, Caviar is high in zinc which has been shown to improve male sexual performance as well as stimulate female desire. Although usually quite pricey, several varieties of caviar can be had for a reasonable price.

Word of caution here though, when it comes to delicacies, sometimes you really do get what you pay for. Buying caviar at a supermarket may not be the best move, but if it’s a big night and there’s no time to go online and order the finest, most expensive caviar available, large amounts of the cheap stuff will probably do the trick if you believe it will.

In conclusion, this all may be psychological. Sure, there’s evidence that links the nutritional value to sexual health and pleasure in some of these products, but my philosophy is if you eat a certain food or drink believing it will have a certain effect on you and it does, more power to you. Even if it doesn’t work, who cares? You get to eat good food and you get to have sex, throw in chestnuts and some mistletoe and you’ve got Christmas!

Saturday, January 29, 2011

"I'm just a regular, amateur cosplayer," says Ushijima Ii Niku, or Ushijima "Good Meat", in a swish Tokyo hole-in-the-wall eatery. By day, she has an office job, photoshopping adult-related pictures, and in her free time, she cosplays. She's anything but ordinary. (NSFW)

Her fans range from the Akiba faithful to artists like Street Fighter II character designer and famed illustrator Akira Yasuda, who released a "doujin" erotic comic featuring Ushijima. "She's appealing because she's beautiful, sports a bowl-cut hairdo, doesn't wear a lot of make up, has good photos and a nice figure," Yasuda, who is better known as "Akiman", rattles off to Kotaku.

Ushijima considers herself "Akiba-kei" or an "Akiba-type"j and has been interested in gaming, manga and anime since she was a kid. "I love fighting games," she says. That, and ero Evangelion comics. The 20-something-year-old first came to the attention of Japanese otaku in 2007 after a set of her cosplay photos took the internet by storm. Since then, she's become the country's most famous cosplayer, garnering attention from the Japanese media. In Akihabara, Tokyo's geek district, she's achieved idol status, with fans snapping up her self-published photo CDs.

"I got into cosplay by accident of sorts," she says. A cosplayer acquaintance said she should release a set of cosplay photos in 2006. "I only sold 13 copies," she says. "And seven of them were bought by friends, so I really only sold 6." She had taken the stage name of Ushijima Ii Niku after trying to decide an easy to remember email address. She took the name "Ushijima" from the manga "Yamikin Ushijima-Kun". "Ii niku" or "good meat" sounds like obvious fetishization of the flesh, but she chose it because it's a Japanese word play on the numbers "1129" (ichi ichi ni kyu), the last four numbers of her email address.

"I got into cosplay by accident of sorts."

But by 2007, she made waves with a series of cosplay photos based on Dragon Quest Swords. Since then, she's built up a following online thanks to her saucy pin-up cosplay pics.

"I wanted to do erotic cosplay, because I think it's more interesting than regular pictures," the Tokyo-native adds. Her fans would agree. Besides the game and anime references, her photos show the influence of imagery from the S&M scene and the Japanese sex industry. She's like the Bettie Page of Japan, except that she does not do full nudity. It's easy to look at the psycho sexual elements in her photos and write her off as yet another young woman who is being taken advantage of. However, it seems that she is anything but.

She produces and self-publishes all her own videos and photos. She selects all the costumes or commissions them, picks the locations for her photos and decides the poses, leaving the nuts and bolts of the photography to the cameraman she selects, conceding that, of course, she is not a professional photographer. The imagery in the photos might appear masochistic, but Ushijima appears to be completely in control. "I don't show anything I don't want to show," she says, "and I don't do anything I don't want to do."

There is a concept, perhaps a Western one, that for women to be in power, they must explicitly be in power, wearing pants, talking like a man, whatever. Ushijima's photos snub their nose at that. While other popular pin-ups might enter a Japanese talent agency and sign with a manager to help plan their career, Ushijima has no interest in that whatsoever. "What do I need a talent agency for," she asks. "They'd just make me do stuff I don't want to do. They might not let me meet my fans, for example." In the mainstream Japanese entertainment business, talent agencies rule, micro-managing and controlling the lives of their talent. Ushijima has no interest in that whatsoever, making her a bit of an anomaly. She regularly communicates with fans, and even did a series of photo-shoots in their rooms.

"I don't do anything I don't want to do."

Wearing skimpy outfits and flashing her underpants, these photos are actually more revealing about the person whose room is featured than Ushijima, offering a peak at the otaku fans who inhabit the space. In some of the photos, the fans play video games, while Ushijima is sprawled out reading a comic. Ushijima poses next to PlayStations as if she's a living, breathing version of the plastic figurines that occupy the shelves and desks of Japanese otaku.

"I want to be a figurine," she says. She further explains that it isn't that she simply wants to be a figurine, but she wants to be posed as one for photos. There is a sub-culture of otaku who purchase pricey figurines and then photograph them. Ushijima considers herself to be "raw material" for the photos. It's as though she is no more important than the background or the costume she wears. While this might come off as degrading, Ushijima's photos are not just about her or the costumes or her own sexuality, but the interplay between them as filtered through otaku culture.

Once one looks beyond the skin, it's easy to read more into Ushijima's work. She does cosplay performances in art galleries and her photos do have more substance than one typically finds in work of this ilk. "These are not art," she's quick to say, adding that one must really define what art is. "These are just images, and there is nothing I want to say." But when probed further, she does have explicit reasons why she selects certain costumes or certain themes. Nobody has a $3,000 Evangelion-style rubber suit made on a whim.

Ushijima's reached the top of otakudom, with a successful cosplay cottage industry and fame with fans, who often recognize her on the street. "Though, I usually wear frumpier clothes," says Ushijima, decked out in a sailor suit-style tunic, and an impossibly short skirt, tittering on stiletto heels. "So I blend in better." Other well-known Japanese cosplayers might make a beeline into mainstream popular entertainment world or the less mainstream, albeit popular, adult film business. "I'm not interested in doing either," she says. "I'm not going to show people that." Rather, what she's interested in doing is producing cosplay photos for other up-and-coming cosplayers, taking advantage of the skill-set she's developed over the past few years. "But at the end of the day, this is my hobby," she says. "I'm doing what I want to do."

BSF shot dead teenagers trying to exfilterate to Pakistan

Yudhvir Rana, TNN, Jan 28, 2011, 12.49pm IST

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AMRITSAR: Border Security Force (BSF) shot dead two teen aged boys in the wee hours of Friday while they were trying to illegally cross over to Pakistan from Indo-Pak international border near Amritsar.

The preliminary investigations suggests that both of them are Bangladeshi Muslims. Rupees five hundred and a watch have been recovered from one of them.

Giving details of the incident BSF inspector general (frontier) Himmat Singh told TOI that a patrolling party of BSF spotted some suspicious movements in a mustard field near BSF's Mullankot Border Outpost (BOP), about four and half kilometer north of Attari international border, at around 1 AM on Friday.

BSF jawan's challenged them to stop but they ignored the warning and instead ran towards the border fence and one of them even managed to cross the fence following which BSF opened fire and shot both of them dead said he.

A slip written in Bangla language had been recovered from them besides a watch and Rs 500 which makes BSF believe that the persons who were trying to exfilterate from India to Pakistan were Bangladeshi nationals said he while adding that further investigations were on progress.

He said many Bangladeshi nationals often illegally try to cross over to Pakistan in search of better living condition and work in a Muslim country or to live with their relatives largely settled in and around Karachi. Mostly these people fall pray to the human traffickers who brings them to Amritsar from Kolkota by train , take them near the international border , shows them the border fence and ask them to cross the fence at night , But they are either captured or shot dead if they ignore the BSF's warnings.